Category: Property

SINGAPORE – Under-performing students from disadvantaged families will be given more holistic support by the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC) from next year. The non-profit self-help group for the Chinese community will expand its student programme to help develop motivation, resilience and discipline in learning among weaker students. This will be done through extra mentoring and supervision from former school leaders, tutors and trainers. The organisation will also help create a more conducive learning environment at home for the students by providing tables and lamps where needed, along with additional…

The details of the Lease Buyback Scheme’s (LBS) extension to all flats should be ready by early next year, Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said yesterday. The announcement that the LBS would be extended to cover five-room and larger flats was made in August this year. Under the LBS, flat owners aged 65 and above who meet several other criteria can sell part of their flat’s lease to the Housing Board while retaining the length of lease based on the age of the youngest owner. The proceeds from such a sale…

SINGAPORE – Paper wrappers were found stuffed inside a wall at a Woodlands Housing Board block lift landing, raising concerns among some residents. A resident of Block 729 Woodlands Circle saw the wrapper exposed during renovation works and was worried about the block’s structural safety, Chinese language newspaper Shin Min Daily News reported on Saturday (Oct 20). The man, who did not wish to be named, said that paper was stuffed in a gap between the metal frame of the lift door and the wall in both the 10th and…

Prices of private apartments and condominiums outside the central area may come under pressure with the Government’s move to reverse the trend of developers building more and more shoebox units, say market experts. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) announced on Wednesday that it will cut the maximum number of units allowed in new private flat and condo developments outside the central area from early next year, in a bid to manage potential strains and stresses on infrastructure. The new guidelines will apply to new development applications for projects submitted on or after Jan 17…

This cube-shaped stone home built in the idyllic setting of Lombok island, Indonesia, is named “Maleo” after the region’s local bird species, and sits neatly overlooking the Jabon hills and the golden sands of Selong Belanak beach. Australian architect Mitchel Squires designed the seven-bedroom residence to make the most of the spectacular rolling-hills setting: “I was really taken by its surroundings, in fact many parts of South Lombok are fairly untouched and local villagers were watchful of the new developments. “I wanted to set the tone for properties in the area. I was conscious to design something that blended in the with the landscape…

SINGAPORE: Around 1,500 HDB flats will be the first to be launched in November this year at Tengah, the first new town in more than 20 years. Announcing this in a blog on Sunday (May 13), National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said this will be a “substantial offering” with a “good mix across different flat-types”. “Over the new few years, we will continue to have a steady stream of Tengah flats. When completed, Tengah Town will grow to about 700 hectares, roughly equivalent to Bishan in size,” Mr Wong said. He added…

SINGAPORE: Conveyancing lawyer Kang Bee Leng was fined S$10,000 on Tuesday (Apr 17) for failing to flag to the authorities a suspicious transaction involving more than S$5 million by a Chinese tycoon to buy property in Sentosa Cove. This was despite her suspicion that the money was linked to a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme in China after reading reports of her client’s arrest. Kang, the 56-year-old managing director of Sterling Law Corporation, pleaded guilty to the charge on Tuesday morning. She could have been fined up to S$20,000. A property…

WHILE some investors have reservations regarding entering the property market now due to concerns about economic uncertainty, speaker Dr Renesial Leong has encouraged the investors to swim against the tide In the recent StarProperty.my Forum, Leong, who is both a real estate investor and a book author, shared the reasons on why one should invest in property now in her talk titled “Why it is time you should venture into real estate”. Malaysia’s market has exceeded all expectations The bright factors in Malaysia’s market including the appreciation of Ringgit that…

SINGAPORE: Tulip Garden condominium in Farrer Road has been sold for nearly S$907 million following a fourth attempt at a collective sale, with the selling price at a 20.4-per-cent premium to the original price tag. The freehold development, which was sold to Asia Radiant, is the second-largest collective sale in Singapore this year, marketing agent Colliers International announced in a news release on Thursday (Apr 12). The sale price translates to a land cost of about S$1,790 per square foot per plot ratio, said Colliers International. The owners of the development had…

SINGAPORE – Resale prices of condominiums and private apartments crossed an important mark last month by surpassing the last peak in prices seen in January 2014, according to flash estimates from SRX Property on Tuesday (March 13). Resale prices in February climbed 1.9 per cent from the previous month – higher than the 1.3 per cent month-on-month price rise seen in January, which was revised up from an earlier estimate of a 1 per cent increase. February’s resale prices were one per cent higher from the peak in January 2014 and…